Somewhat Weird Form Of Cursive Writing - Is It Legible?

[DavidsonChua]

Hello all,

 

Attached is a sample of my writing in letters, mathematical notation and a chemical equation.

 

A while back, I attempted to learn Palmer's method, but I gave up after a short period of time due to other commitments, and didn't really learn Palmer's the right way. Due to my previous italic background, and a hazy impression of Palmer's and other forms of cursive, I began writing as shown in the picture.

 

Considering I've gotten used to this form of writing, I am absolutely ill-suited to judging how legible it is. Since I consistently write for homework at school, I would like to ask - how legible is my writing to you? Any suggestions on how to make it more beautiful/legible are welcome and much appreciated. Also, if possible, could anyone comment on my mathematics and chemistry notation, and whether they seem accurate?

 

Thank you in advance!

 

Cheers,

Davidson

[knarflj]

Davidson, I didn't have any trouble reading it, except that I had to pause briefly to figure out what the capital "I" was; in context, though, that did not take long at all.

 

I'm no authority on how to write beautifully, but for extra ease in reading, I would suggest joining 'w' to the following letter at the top, rather than returning down to the baseline as if the 'w' were a 'u'.

 

Jenny

[DavidsonChua]

Davidson, I didn't have any trouble reading it, except that I had to pause briefly to figure out what the capital "I" was; in context, though, that did not take long at all.

 

I'm no authority on how to write beautifully, but for extra ease in reading, I would suggest joining 'w' to the following letter at the top, rather than returning down to the baseline as if the 'w' were a 'u'.

 

Jenny

 

Thanks Jenny for the comments! I will make my `I`s more legible. Also, the change in `w` connection does greatly improve readability. Thanks again!

[proton007]

Hello all,

 

Attached is a sample of my writing in letters, mathematical notation and a chemical equation.

 

A while back, I attempted to learn Palmer's method, but I gave up after a short period of time due to other commitments, and didn't really learn Palmer's the right way. Due to my previous italic background, and a hazy impression of Palmer's and other forms of cursive, I began writing as shown in the picture.

 

Considering I've gotten used to this form of writing, I am absolutely ill-suited to judging how legible it is. Since I consistently write for homework at school, I would like to ask - how legible is my writing to you? Any suggestions on how to make it more beautiful/legible are welcome and much appreciated. Also, if possible, could anyone comment on my mathematics and chemistry notation, and whether they seem accurate?

 

Thank you in advance!

 

Cheers,

Davidson

 

Davidson,

Your writing is legible, no issues there.

 

Since you talk about schoolwork, remember that a lot of us have a couple (maybe more) of different styles of writing. What you'll need for exams and school is a fast + legible style of writing. Cursive doesn't fit the bill, because there are always ways to shorten those connectors between letters. Keep your focus on the letter shape and formation, to improve legibility.

 

Beautiful as it looks, Palmer Style needs proper technique, and a slow to moderate writing speed, which may not be the most practical for everyday use.

However, it is still worth learning and practising.

[DavidsonChua]

 

Davidson,

Your writing is legible, no issues there.

 

Since you talk about schoolwork, remember that a lot of us have a couple (maybe more) of different styles of writing. What you'll need for exams and school is a fast + legible style of writing. Cursive doesn't fit the bill, because there are always ways to shorten those connectors between letters. Keep your focus on the letter shape and formation, to improve legibility.

 

Beautiful as it looks, Palmer Style needs proper technique, and a slow to moderate writing speed, which may not be the most practical for everyday use.

However, it is still worth learning and practising.

 

I will keep into mind your comments on letter shape and formation.

 

Regarding Palmer Style, I am considering relearning it, but I am afraid that if I learn the style, I may lose my personalization in my handwriting. What do you think?

 

Also, isn't cursive designed for faster writing? Well, what I do know is that my cursive writing is at least twice as fast as my typical writing, and less tiring too.

 

Last but not least, thanks for your comments!

Edited March 19, 2014 by DavidsonChua

[Paddler]

 

I will keep into mind your comments on letter shape and formation.

 

Regarding Palmer Style, I am considering relearning it, but I am afraid that if I learn the style, I may lose my personalization in my handwriting. What do you think?

 

Also, isn't cursive designed for faster writing? Well, what I do know is that my cursive writing is at least twice as fast as my typical writing, and less tiring too.

 

Last but not least, thanks for your comments!

You won't lose your personalization unless you work at it. If you achieve perfection, your writing will look like a writing instruction book. Stop practicing just short of perfection and your writing will be unique.

 

For speed and legibility, lower case block printing is the way to go. It is what military radio operators used when copying messages in Morse code. Nearly all the letters were written with one stroke.

[DavidsonChua]

You won't lose your personalization unless you work at it. If you achieve perfection, your writing will look like a writing instruction book. Stop practicing just short of perfection and your writing will be unique.

 

For speed and legibility, lower case block printing is the way to go. It is what military radio operators used when copying messages in Morse code. Nearly all the letters were written with one stroke.

 

Thank you for your reply. I will begin work on Palmer's Method the next time my school breaks for holiday.

 

Ah, if that's the case, it's probable that my block writing just needs practice.

[Sandy1]

Fine with me - if that counts for anything.

[Dickkooty2]

You won't lose your personalization unless you work at it. If you achieve perfection, your writing will look like a writing instruction book. Stop practicing just short of perfection and your writing will be unique.

 

For speed and legibility, lower case block printing is the way to go. It is what military radio operators used when copying messages in Morse code. Nearly all the letters were written with one stroke.

Right you are, Paddler. I learned this method at Ft Hood in 1957 taking Morse in five letter code groups. The temperature in July was 103. My headphones would clog with sweat and have to be emptied. For a 'break', the sgt would play "A Soldier-boy's Deck of Cards" as recorded by T Texas Tyler. It was a hard way to learn to write … remember the 1 with the line under it and the zero with the diagonal line through it? And saying (on those rare occasions when you used voice) niner for nine?

 

IMI as always: 'say again your last transmission'

[dr saleem ali]

Besides being doctor , I am also a teacher ,and find find your writing very legible and neat .As far as chmistry and maths. are concerned ,use simple letters rather than cursive as they are written in universal format so everyone should be able to read them very easily IMHOP.

[proton007]

 

I will keep into mind your comments on letter shape and formation.

 

Regarding Palmer Style, I am considering relearning it, but I am afraid that if I learn the style, I may lose my personalization in my handwriting. What do you think?

 

Also, isn't cursive designed for faster writing? Well, what I do know is that my cursive writing is at least twice as fast as my typical writing, and less tiring too.

 

Last but not least, thanks for your comments!

 

As Paddler said, if you perfect the Palmer technique, you'll be writing exactly like the copy book, but the techniques of letter formation and hand movement will carry over to other styles, and optimized according to the speed requirements. Our brain is most adaptable in incorporating new things subconsciously.

 

Cursive was designed to minimize 'pen lifting'. In the old days when quills and dip nibs were used commonly, a 'lift' of the pen off paper would mean ink spattering, and a variation of flow. The only way to write 'fast' with those pens was to use cursive.

 

If you feel your cursive is faster, then you can go with it, but remember there are faster ways too.. (well, short of shorthand).

 

Here's a sample from my inks-to-buy list:

 

It's not exactly cursive, I'll say some hybrid variant. It was written without paying any attention to aesthetics, at a moderate to fast speed.

I'm still practicing the Palmer style, and I can feel there's some change in the way I shape some of the letters.

And yes, quite a few inks in there

Edited March 20, 2014 by proton007

[DavidsonChua]

Thank you for all your comments!

 

Right you are, Paddler. I learned this method at Ft Hood in 1957 taking Morse in five letter code groups. The temperature in July was 103. My headphones would clog with sweat and have to be emptied. For a 'break', the sgt would play "A Soldier-boy's Deck of Cards" as recorded by T Texas Tyler. It was a hard way to learn to write … remember the 1 with the line under it and the zero with the diagonal line through it? And saying (on those rare occasions when you used voice) niner for nine?

 

IMI as always: 'say again your last transmission'

 

I've never done this kind of things, but my Maths teacher insists on writing like that too... With a line through the "z".

 

Besides being doctor , I am also a teacher ,and find find your writing very legible and neat .As far as chmistry and maths. are concerned ,use simple letters rather than cursive as they are written in universal format so everyone should be able to read them very easily IMHOP.

 

Thank you for saying my writing is neat! I will take care to use simple letters for mathematics and chemistry, but my physics teacher says cursive / italics are better for algebraic scalars, so I'll try to use simple cursive for those situations. Thank you for the suggestion!

 

 

As Paddler said, if you perfect the Palmer technique, you'll be writing exactly like the copy book, but the techniques of letter formation and hand movement will carry over to other styles, and optimized according to the speed requirements. Our brain is most adaptable in incorporating new things subconsciously.

 

Cursive was designed to minimize 'pen lifting'. In the old days when quills and dip nibs were used commonly, a 'lift' of the pen off paper would mean ink spattering, and a variation of flow. The only way to write 'fast' with those pens was to use cursive.

 

If you feel your cursive is faster, then you can go with it, but remember there are faster ways too.. (well, short of shorthand).

 

Here's a sample from my inks-to-buy list:

Capture.PNG

 

It's not exactly cursive, I'll say some hybrid variant. It was written without paying any attention to aesthetics, at a moderate to fast speed.

I'm still practicing the Palmer style, and I can feel there's some change in the way I shape some of the letters.

And yes, quite a few inks in there

 

Although you say you paid no attention to aesthetics, your writing is really beautiful and legible, to me at least. Thank you for your suggestion and sample writing! (That's a lot of inks )

[Dickkooty2]

RE: Writing the Army Way … as in "There's the right way. the wrong way. and the Army Way". Usually said with a southern accent (at least in the '50's):

 

http://s271.photobucket.com/user/dick168/media/images_zpsa875cab9.jpeg.html?sort=3&o=1

 

 

 

I've never done this kind of things, but my Maths teacher insists on writing like that too... With a line through the "z".

Davidsonchao (above)

[Moose22]

Hey Proton, I have a suggestion on how to legibly speed up making your ink list. Change the second column to "Diamine: All"

 

But you do point out that you are going moderately fast and, in that list, I find everything instantly legible. I'd be lucky to start from there, as I picked up a spencer workbook after my hand deteriorated to incomprehensible symbols that nobody could read but me.

 

It's not a work of calligraphy, but it is attractive and the only hybridization is the use of more print-standard capitals. No need to be a purist if you're writing is clear and readable, even if you're learning a standard style for whatever purposes.

[wallylynn]

i find your writing very legible. "beautiful" not so much. The key to "beautiful" writing is consistency.

- Use lines to keep everything straight. If you don't have lined paper, use a guide sheet underneath.

- Keep the slants the same angle, the loops the same size

 

I think what bothers me the most is that you have very little space between letters, some letters touch each other, and lots of space between words.

 

I like to refer people to:

http://www.paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html

[DavidsonChua]

i find your writing very legible. "beautiful" not so much. The key to "beautiful" writing is consistency.

- Use lines to keep everything straight. If you don't have lined paper, use a guide sheet underneath.

- Keep the slants the same angle, the loops the same size

 

I think what bothers me the most is that you have very little space between letters, some letters touch each other, and lots of space between words.

 

I like to refer people to:

http://www.paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html

Thank you for your comments. I will work on writing with lines, and with practice, I hope to be able to write straight without lines, which is frequently the requirement. I will also begin practice on consistency and spacing. Thank you again!

[Sasha Royale]

Speaking for the Eastern US public school problem children of the 1960's, I can understand all of it,

except the chemistry.

 

I recommend Noodler's bulletproof ink, since you are going to spill stuff on your writing. Noodler's

bullet ink resists beer, acetone, Clorox, coffee, Barancort rhum. & Pepsi. (I challenged some

college kids.)

 

Write with joy.

[KBeezie]

The nice thing about people who can write cursive, is they're usually capable of reading other people's cursives, because your brain eventually recognizes the pattern from one letter to the next, and can usually see the 'word' not so much every individual letter.

[proton007]

Hey Proton, I have a suggestion on how to legibly speed up making your ink list. Change the second column to "Diamine: All"

 

But you do point out that you are going moderately fast and, in that list, I find everything instantly legible. I'd be lucky to start from there, as I picked up a spencer workbook after my hand deteriorated to incomprehensible symbols that nobody could read but me.

 

It's not a work of calligraphy, but it is attractive and the only hybridization is the use of more print-standard capitals. No need to be a purist if you're writing is clear and readable, even if you're learning a standard style for whatever purposes.

 

 

The list only contains colors that have sheen or shade well. I haven't added colors that I just like, even though they don't have the sheen or shading.... Maybe I'll create another list!

[DavidsonChua]

Speaking for the Eastern US public school problem children of the 1960's, I can understand all of it,

except the chemistry.

 

I recommend Noodler's bulletproof ink, since you are going to spill stuff on your writing. Noodler's

bullet ink resists beer, acetone, Clorox, coffee, Barancort rhum. & Pepsi. (I challenged some

college kids.)

 

Write with joy.

Thank you for the ink recommendation! I will definitely look into it for my next ink purchase. (I did spill some acetone on my worksheets before. The ink mostly survived, fortunately.)

 

The nice thing about people who can write cursive, is they're usually capable of reading other people's cursives, because your brain eventually recognizes the pattern from one letter to the next, and can usually see the 'word' not so much every individual letter.

 

I guess that's why most of my teachers can understand my writing (but not so much my classmates).